Ghana
ranks best state in Africa
Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh, Ghanadot
Accra, July 16, Ghanadot -
The Foreign Policy’s Online annual index on
Wednesday ranked Ghana the best state in Africa.
Norway was ranked the best state in the world, while
the worst state went to Somalia, a war torn country.
According to the index, Ghana is ranked the 53rd
most failed state in the world and the least failed
state in Africa. The placement is an improvement
from last year's ranking.
Out of the 15 most failed nations surveyed, ten were
African nations. These include Somalia (1st),
Zimbabwe (2nd), Sudan (3rd), Chad (4th), Democratic
Republic of Congo (5th), Central African Republic
(8th), Guinea (9th), Ivory Coast (11th), Kenya
(14th), and Nigeria (15th).
The best five nations, which were described as
having the most sustainable state include Norway
(177), Finland (176), Sweden (175), Switzerland
(174), and Ireland (173).
Ghana emerged the best state in Africa, ranked 124
and classified as moderate state, while USA was
159th and UK 161 on the survey list.
The newly released Failed State Index 2009 was
published by the United States think-tank and an
independent research organisation, the Fund for
Peace, and the magazine Foreign Policy. It ranked
177 countries according to their potential for
failure, which was based on the totals of 12 scores
for factors of state stability. Each factor received
a rating of 1 to 10, 10 being the least stable.
Ghana's total score was 66.2
The index's ranks are based on twelve indicators of
state vulnerability - four social, two economic and
six political. The indicators are not designed to
forecast when states may experience violence or
collapse. Instead, they are meant to measure a
state's vulnerability to collapse or conflict.
The Crisis States Research Centre defines a “failed
state” as a condition of “state collapse” – i.e., a
state that can no longer perform its basic security
and development functions and that has no effective
control over its territory. The Index used 12
indicators of state cohesion and performance,
compiled through a close examination of more than
30,000 publicly available sources.
The survey also ranked 177 states in order from most
to least at risk of failure. The 60 most vulnerable
states are listed in the rankings. The list only
assesses sovereign states (determined by membership
in the United Nations.) Several territories are
excluded until their political status and UN
membership is ratified in international law.
For example, Taiwan, the Palestinian Territories,
Northern Cyprus, Kosovo, and Western Sahara are not
included in the list, even though some are
recognized as sovereign states by some nations.
Ranking is based on the total scores of the 12
indicators. For each indicator, the ratings are
placed on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being the
lowest intensity (most stable) and 10 being the
highest intensity (least stable). The total score is
the sum of the 12 indicators and is on a scale of
0-120.
The applied indicators include
demographic pressures; massive movement of refugees
and internally displaced peoples; legacy of
vengeance-seeking group grievance; chronic and
sustained human flight; uneven economic development
along group lines; and sharp and/or severe economic
decline. Others are criminalisation and/or
delegitimisation of the state; progressive
deterioration of public services; widespread
violation of human rights; security apparatus as
‘state within a state’; rise of factionalised
elites; and intervention of other states or external
factors. “It is a sobering time for the world’s most
fragile countries—virulent economic crisis,
countless natural disasters, and government
collapse.
Ghanadot
